Week #6 Flashcards
Define
Affluent
(afˊlü ənt)
Rich
Under duress from the tax officer, the beggar admitted
that he was truly affluent.
Define
Feasible
(fēˊ zə bal)
Possible
It’s feasible to build an electric auto, but wouldn’t you
need a terribly long extension cord?
Define
Discern
(də zėrnˊor də sėrnˊ)
Perceive
When we could discern the city lights, we knew we
were safe at last
Define
Sally
(salˊi)
Suddenly rush forth
Some prisoners planned a disturbance while others
would sally toward the gate.
Define
Consternation
(konˊ stər nāˊshən)
Dismay
To the consternation of the sergeant, there was a
paucity of volunteers for the dangerous mission.
Define
I’m From Missouri
A skeptic, one who isn’t easily convinced
You might swallow his promises, but I’m from Missouri.
Define
Precocious
(pri kōˊshəs)
Reaching maturity early
The children in Shakespeare’s plays are so
precocious that they all sound like grandparents.
Define
Perfunctory
(pər fungkˊtə ri)
Done w/o care, superficial
I construed the doctor’s perfunctory examination to
indicate that I was in good health.
Chagrin
(shə grinˊ)
Feeling of disappointment, humiliation
To the chagrin of many taxpayers, some citizens seem
to cheat the government with impunity.
Define
Perverse
(pər vėrsˊ)
Contrary, persisting in error
When I correct my kid brother’s math errors, he is
perverse enough to insist that he is right.
Define
Deride
(dĭ rīdˊ)
To ridicule, scoff at
The Wright brothers didn’t become distraught when a skeptic would deride their work.
Define
Red Letter Day
Successful, day of happiness, rejoicing
My red letter day came when I was chosen as senior
class president.
Define
Disparage
(dis parˊ ij)
To discredit, belittle
The affluent storeowner disparaged the efforts of his
small competitor, saying that he could always tolerate
that kind of rivalry.
Define
Laudable
(lôdˊə bəl)
Praiseworthy
The paradox is that Jim’s inexorable pursuit of
Angelique was both laudable and despicable.
Define
Fiasco
(fi asˊkō)
Complete failure
In an acrimonious letter her father described the project
as a complete fiasco.
Define
Masticate
(masˊ tə kāt)
To chew up
To aid in digestion, you must masticate each piece of
meat one dozen times.
Define
Eschew
(es chüˊ)
Avoid
Once he sought the limelight, but now he eschews all
interviews.
Define
To Let Sleeping Dogs Lie
To let well enough alone, to avoid stirring up
old hostilities
The lawyer wanted to openup the old case, but his
partner adivsed him to let sleeping dogs lie.
Define
Quell
(kwel)
Put an end to
In order to quell the riot, the police sallied forth with tear gas.
Define
Voluble
(volˊū bəl)
Talkative
I could not doze in the chair because of the voluble
barber.
Define
Confidant
(kon fəˊdantˊ)
One to whom you confide your secrets
A teenage boy’s father should be his true confidant.
Define
Obsolescence
(obˊ sə lesˊ əns)
Process of wearing out
The obsolescence built into many products could be
regarded as a flagrant insult toward the duped
consumer.
Define
Dubious
(düˊbi əs)
Doubtful
When the duplicity was revealed, the jury became
dubious about Ed’s innocence.
Define
Thumbs Down
Signal of rejection
My father turned thumbs down on our plan to hitchhike
to Florida during Easter.
